The Things We Learn
by countrybutterfly
Summary: Would Sonny really love his son, Michael, no matter what? Even if he knew secret the boy had been keeping. SLASH. MichaelxOC


Okay, so **what you need to know:** This idea has been nagging since about mid-December, but I'm wrapping up a couple of my other stories right now, so what this is the Prequel one-shot to a story I'll be posting within the next week or two. This takes place about 5 year from where the show is at now.

This Slash, pairing is MichaelxOC.

Let me know what you think. Any thoughts, concerns, questions, or suggestions about this or its upcoming story. I'm open to anything, but flames.

As is standard, I don't own General Hospital or any of its characters.

**So without further ado, I hope you enjoy**

**

* * *

**Michael liked knowing thing. He had hated himself for the fact that right he had woken up five years ago at the age of seventeen, he hadn't known much. But he was learning.

He had tried to hold to one thing that hadn't changed, the one thing that had remained constant in his life, despite the coma: his father and his father's business. But his father had denied him that chance, had wanted more for him. He learned that his father wanted to protect him. Everyone just wanted to protect him. And he resented himself for their protection. The more protective they were the more judged he felt. Everyone watching and waiting for him to make the next move. But he didn't know what the right thing to do was. So, he yelled to push them away and tried to drink away everything he didn't know. He needed to be angry. It didn't work, it only landed him, and his father in the worst possible situation, and forced Michael to face himself. Forced him to grow up.

He learned that as he grew up, and began to know things about himself he found the control of his life that he had wanted. Yet as he faced himself he kept one thing in the back of his he wasn't sure if he ever wanted to know the answer to. Sonny Corinthos had told him that there was nothing Michael could do to stop his father from loving him. Would that still be true if Sonny knew everything Michael had discovered about himself? Afraid of the answer he never asked the question out loud.

And yet every door you don't want to face will open.

_**XxXxXxXxXxX**_

Sonny Corithos had known from the moment that Michael had entered his life he would love that little boy forever. He had said it once he had said it a million time; Michael had made him a father. There had even been the occasional thought that even if Olivia had told him about Dante, if he had been there, he might not have been the same kind father he had become, and he knew the credit went to Michael. He was sure there would be some people out there who would disagree with the kind of father he was. He wanted to be active in his children's lives, and with his career that came with some risk. But he always loved them, and he hoped they knew that. He would, and he had, would risk everything for them, to protect them.

Which is why he had been sitting in prison for five year, a good portion of that spent in the infirmary. He'd been walking with a target on his back since the day he arrived, and the occasional idiot took aim. Most learned to steer clear of the stubborn man who refused die in this infested place. His dedication to making it to his probation hearing was fueled by seeing his children even though he knew that he could be saint in here the state would fight to keep him in. Still his mind was set; make up for lost time with Dante, see Michael graduate college, set things right with Kristina, teach Morgan how to drive.

A month before his parole would be up for discussion, a cocky Diane paid him a visit to ask how he'd like to get out of the his current hell hole, and naturally he thought she was talking probation. She laughed, because she knew as well as he did probation was about a possible as hell freezing over. Instead she had over the paper work, she had done one better. Armed with new evidence after a police raid on Johnny Zaccahara's apartment and a Tupperware container filled with dirt on Claire Walsh and several other people of standing in the law enforcement community Sonny Corinthos was once again a free man and all without pointing fingers at Michael.

_**XxXxXxXxXxX**_

Sonny checked the address on the paper that Diane had given him to make sure he was at the right place. He shook his head at the door of the apartment situated near the heart of the college town a few hours outside of Port Charles. He took a breath he'd deal with upgrading his son's living situation later, knocking on the door he waited. He had figured seeing Michael first would be the easiest, he'd be the most receptive, most relieved to know that Claudia's murder was officially behind them. No one answered the door, but he could hear sound from inside. He tried knocking again, calling out his son's name. Still no answer , but after a definite thud, he grabbed for the door handle; easier to ask forgiveness than permission.

Opening the door he found a tiny living room connected to an equally small kitchen. There was a sudden laughter and Sonny relieved started to make his way back outside to pretend nothing had come in and he'd just knock again. He suspected jail for five years had made him this jittery. As he took as step back he was stopped by a picture on the coffee table. There was no mistaking the relaxed and happy face of his son, a face he hadn't seen since before the coma, but it was the rest of the picture that bothered Sonny, the arms wrapped loosely around his son, and Sonny stared at that picture in disbelief. The picture of another man kissing, albeit on the cheek, still _kissing __**his son. **_

_"__**Dad**_?"


End file.
